Monday, November 14, 2011

Aloha Mahalo

We just returned from Hawaii. What could be better than a tropical getaway with my husband, daughter and best friend? Not much, I tell you! Yes, Bill, Elyse, Marcie and I just got home from our great trip!

It was a wonderful trip, with a bittersweet ending. The night before we left I got a call that my Grandpa wasn't doing well. He has lung cancer and was recently moved to a nursing home. It was a night of tossing and turning. The morning we left and on our way to the airport, I learned he'd been given a couple of hours to live. It was a tearful journey home. Grandpa did pass away, surrounded by family who love him. Flying across the Pacific was me praying constantly that he be in peace. Prayers for my Grandma and love to Grandpa who surely had a wonderful reunion with his daughter yesterday. That gives me great peace.

OK, tears swept away for the moment as I take you back to our trip. We had a couple of days in Oahu where we visited with friends and family. We saw my cousin Salina and her boyfriend, Ray, as well as my friend Yasha and her husband, Matt. We spent the remainder of our trip in Maui.

Here is Elyse playing on the lawn at Hanauma Bay.

It felt so good to run after being cooped up!

We stayed at the Sheraton Waikiki. It was Bill's first trip to Hawaii and I'm so glad he got to experience Waikiki. Elyse did love their pool!

Marcie and I got massages from Salina - it was wonderful. We stopped in to see her one last time on our way to the airport.

It was a pleasure getting to spend time with her.﻿

On to Maui. We stayed at the newest resort in Maui - Honua Kai in Kaanapali. It was a beautiful condo. Although my missy being on the lanai did give me anxiety, so Dad took her out there instead. Here is she is taunting me sticking her hand through the open glass - ugh...

Honolulu is fun, but I loved Maui! It was laid back and beautiful!

Elyse loved the shaved ice on her aching teeth - she's working on getting her upper molars in and had some periodic discomfort. Ahhhh, shaved ice!

Treats and pass-backs between the three of us were just the right medicine.

Yasha's husband recommended a drive to the Paia Fish Market. It was a cute little town and the food was great. Thanks, Matt! This was the day Elyse was mistaken for a boy. I have to tell you, with how she is normally dressed, this was definitely a first!

I really wanted Bill to experience a luau. We chose the Royal Lahaina Luau - it was great! We all really enjoyed ourselves. We all agreed - they had the best mai tais!

There were lots of cute boys there. We took this picture just to tease Bill.

Elyse loved people watching in Hawaii. Well, she did more than watching. Everyone, and I do mean everyone, got a HI from her. And if they ignored her, she'd keep saying it until they'd pay attention to her!

These two were so cute together!

The backdrop allowed for some fun picture taking! Hmmm, you might be seeing something similar on a Christmas card in your future. We had lots of out-takes with our teething baby rubbing her gums (like this one).

Taryn (Marcie's daughter) wanted to make sure we drank Lava Flows for her. We had no trouble there and Elyse wanted to join in. You should have seen how fast she sucked down her (virgin) lava flow!

The dancers were beautiful and the music fun to dance to (as we did with Elyse).

Happy.

Elyse got fussy after dinner because she couldn't run around. But, as soon as the lights were dimmed she was captivated by the music and dancing. She'd bob her head, clap and sway. So cute.